Roche launches new genotyping kits

Roche has made a new set of kits available for use in the genotyping of class I and class II loci of human leukocyte antigen (HLA) genes.

The GS GType HLA Primer Sets from Roche subsidiary 454 Life Sciences are designed for high and medium-resolution genotyping and are compatible with its GS Junior and GS FLX next-generation sequencing systems.

They have been optimised to provide advanced speed and characterisation quality, allowing typing and unambiguous allele assignment to be conducted in a single run.

Roche states that the sets will assist in the challenging but important function of HLA typing, which can play a crucial role in transplantation matching, as well as the study of autoimmune diseases and certain cancers.

Dr Henry Erlich, senior study author and director of the department of human genetics at Roche Molecular Systems, said: "The ability to quickly achieve such high accuracy and resolution will have a significant impact on research and, ultimately, on clinical application of HLA typing."

Last month, Roche expanded its presence in the laboratory core business through the purchase of PVT, a provider of in-vitro diagnostic solutions.